Poggiorsini - La Padula

La Padula sits near Poggiorsini in the hilly hinterland of Bari: 1700 metres run by A.S.D. La Padula, category 3 with UISP approval. The Italian track directory records the ground as a sand and clay mix - we file it as sand, which catches the broad character but hides the clay share. There are no fixed opening hours; here you phone before you drive. There is no infrastructure at all: no bar, no shower, no power, no floodlights. Expect a surface that changes through the day. Sand with a clay content carries almost like hardpack in the morning and turns soft and deep in the afternoon - so do not treat your first laps as the benchmark for the rest of the day. The classic on this ground: the rear pogos and swims once the sand goes deep. Top of our cause list is shock rebound - set too fast, so wind a few clicks back in until the rear stops building itself up.